Guitar Wolf mixes The Ramones, Link Wray, rockabilly & 1977 punk and they call it “jet rock ‘n’ roll.” Don’t know how I missed these guys – they make some great noise.
Wesseh Freeman from Monrovia, Liberia, was almost completely blind. He built his guitar from an oil can, a neck shaped with a machete, and strings from bicycle cables. Amazing story despite a sad ending: he was 41 when he was struck by a car and died in 2018. [h/t Octopus]
That’ll do it for this episode. Have a great 3-day weekend, don’t drive through the deep water, and we’ll see you back here tomorrow.
Link Wray‘s recording career spanned decades, 1958 to 2000, and it’s hard to pinpoint when he was really at his prime. Wray was ranked No. 45 of the 100 greatest guitarists of all time bu Rolling Stone, and is considered the “Father of the Power Chord.” Other fun facts: his parents were Shawnee and Cherokee; he was a Korean War veteran; he lost a lung due to tuberculosis in 1956.
Carlos Santana‘s 1999 album Supernatural is one of my favorites. Can’t believe it came out over two decades ago.
That kinda wraps things up until tomorrow. See you then.
Serge Gainsbourg singing “Chez Les Ye-Ye.” Serge is Pee Wee Herman on sopors. He rocked, but not as much as Pierre Cassel whose shoes became glued to the floor during the video. Cassel’s son is a rapper named “Rockin’ Squat.” Go figger.
Personally, I think Robert Johnson was/is overrated, and his fame is due to his recordings covered by British rockers of the early 60s.
Yeah I know, Blasphemy. Johnson got picked, while others, like Papa Charlie Jackson were overlooked. I’m not an authority on musical anthropology, so take it for what it’s worth.
Jackson’s “Airy Man” showed up on a Yazoo Records album that the Missus gave me years ago. The chords were unusual, and the liner notes said this:
“Airy Man Blues,” a work in the key of D, illustrates Jackson’s most complex blues picking in the uptempo idiom at which he and very few other bluesmen excelled. Two fingers play melody and harmonies with support from a thumb which is quite steady within several different patterns. Often he executes complex or seemingly impromptu runs on three or more strings. The basic chord changes are:
D, D, G7, D; G, D, E, A/A7; D, D, G7, D; G7, D, E/A7, D. In the break he changes to B, B7, E, E7, A, A7 D/D minor, D.
Despite the length of these phrases and the comedy of his lyrics, the song is well within the basic blues idiom, lacking in all essential ragtime qualities except speed.
So I looked for a live vid of Papa Charlie Jackson, but instead found a cool tribute by “Gnarlemagne.” It works.
With that we’re out. Have a great weekend, folks and be back here tomorrow for more inane entertainment.
Tacky Raccoons 